The present invention relates generally to the collection of memorabilia. More particularly, the present invention concerns the collection and retention of memorabilia items in a manner which provides convenient storage, accessibility and versatile display thereof by the collector. More specifically, the present invention concerns a collectable item in the form of a memory album for retaining and displaying items of memorabilia.
The collection and preservation of various types of items is a past-time for many individuals. For some, objects are collected for their monetary value and may be retained as part of a collection of related items in the hope that they appreciate in value, until such time when they can be sold by the collector for profit. Items of this nature might include, for example, artwork, coins, jewelry, books or antiques. Avid collectors of such items may frequent auctions, tradeshows, flea markets or even garage sales in the hope of acquiring a collectable object for less than its actual value. Many organizations such as museums also collect and distribute items in their galleries including fine paintings, sculptures and other artifacts to display as exhibits for the enjoyment and education of the public.
For others, collecting objects is a hobby where the items generally serve as a source of pride, happiness, or entertainment. While the items themselves may have extraordinary monetary value, the sentimental value of the collectable may far outweigh its monetary value in the eye of the beholder. Such memorabilia may encompass a variety of items such as photographs, newspaper articles, concert tickets, preserved flowers, letters, etc. By their very nature, these types of memorabilia remind people of events which have transpired during their lifetimes.
While some choose to store their items of memorabilia in boxes or closets, others are more organized and preserve them in photo albums and scrapbooks so that they can be conveniently accessed and perused as desired. Scrapbooks themselves are available in a variety of different designs which may vary in size, shape and color. Regardless of these variations, scrapbooks generally have front and back covers joined by a spine with a plurality of pages for receiving the items of memorabilia. In essence, the construction of scrapbooks dictates the way in which the memorabilia is presented. Pictures and other memorabilia must necessarily be accommodated within the confines of the size and shape of the individual pages, and the memorabilia generally lays flat on each page. When leafing through a scrapbook, the memorabilia items displayed at any given time are generally limited to those present on adjacent pages of the scrapbook. As such, the view area at any given instant is somewhat limited and the pages tend to disrupt the continuity of the arrangement. This is particularly true if one""s scrapbook is intended to convey a progression in time, such as the growth and development of a newborn baby. A complete mosaic illustrating this progression necessarily cannot be conveyed in one viewing by the very nature of the scrapbook construction.
Accordingly, there remains a need to provide a new design and construction for a memory album, such as a scrapbook, which is versatile in construction while allowing one to view the contents thereof in their entirety without having to consecutively leaf through a plurality of pages in order to appreciate the overall story or theme displayed therein. There is a further need to provide a scrapbook which is both compact and decorative in its construction so that it is both functional and visually appealing. The present invention is particularly directed to meeting these needs.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a new and useful memory album which is adapted to retain and display items of memorabilia, such as photographs, newspaper clippings, writings, ticket stubs, and other like small items.
It is another object of the present invention to provide such a memory album which may be stored in a compact state, yet opened up into an expanded state thereby to display the items of memorabilia.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a new and useful memory album which is versatile in construction while allowing one to view the contents thereof in their entirety without having to consecutively leaf through a plurality of pages.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a memory album, preferably in the form of a scrapbook, which is both compact and decorative in its construction so that is functional and visually appealing.
In accordance with these objectives, the present invention provides for a memory album that is adapted for use in retaining and displaying items of memorabilia. Broadly, the memory album comprises a top cover, a bottom cover and a foldable display panel disposed between the top and bottom covers for receiving the items of memorabilia. The memory album is movable between a compact state wherein the display panel is in a collapsed configuration with the top and bottom covers positioned in a first orientation with respect to one another, and an expanded state wherein the display panel is in a flattened configuration extending along a longitudinal axis with the top and bottom covers positioned at a second orientation with respect to one another that is different than the first orientation.
The display panel is operative upon movement of the memory album between the compact state and the expanded state to extend along both a first direction that is parallel to a longitudinal axis of the display panel and a second direction that is transverse to the longitudinal axis of the display panel, thereby to reveal a plurality of display panel regions that are adapted to receivably retain the items of memorabilia. Also, in the first exemplary embodiment, the display panel unfolds along a plurality of fold lines that each extend transversely to the longitudinal axis when the display panel is in the flattened configuration.
Each of the top and bottom covers preferably measures 4.25xe2x80x3xc3x974.25xe2x80x3. Although not required, they are also preferably detached from one another and constructed of a stiff backing material, such as cardboard, with the foldable display panel interconnected therebetween. The display panel regions of the display panel preferably measure 4xe2x80x3xc3x974xe2x80x3 so that they are geometrically similar, but smaller, than the top and bottom covers.
In a first exemplary embodiment of the memory album the top and bottom covers are positioned in a close, spaced-apart relationship to one another when the memory album is in the compact state and they are positioned along the longitudinal axis a selected separation distance from one another when the memory album is in the expanded state. Also in this first exemplary embodiment, first ones of the fold lines extend perpendicularly to the longitudinal axis of the display panel, while second and third ones of the fold lines extend at an acute angle with respect to the longitudinal axis. More particularly, the second fold lines extend at a positive acute angle with respect to the longitudinal axis, while the third fold lines extend at a negative acute angle with respect to the longitudinal axis. Associated ones of the first, second and third fold lines intersect at a common point along the longitudinal axis, and each of the second and third fold lines has a common length and intersects the longitudinal axis at a common acute angle. Further, longitudinally adjacent ones of the second and third fold lines share a common end point thereby to define a plurality of longitudinally adjacent and geometrically congruent display panel regions sharing a common vertex defined by a respective common point. Longitudinally opposed end ones of these display panel regions are secured, respectively, to the top and bottom covers. Each of the first fold lines preferably has a common second length thereby to define a plurality of transversely spaced-apart and geometrically congruent pairs of display panel regions. These transversely spaced-apart pairs of display panel regions are bisected by an associated one of the first fold lines into geometrically congruent sub-regions.
In the second exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the top and bottom covers are also positioned in a close spaced-apart relationship to one another when in the compact state, but are positioned in a side-by-side relationship to one another when the memory album is in the expanded state. In each of the first and second exemplary embodiments, it is preferred that the top and bottom covers have a common geometric shape, such as rectangular, and that each of the display panel regions be configured geometrically similar to these covers. It is also preferred that a fastening member be connected to a selected one of the top and bottom covers, with this fastening member operative when placed in fastened configuration to prevent the memory album from moving from the compact state to the expanded state. The fastening member is preferably an elongated and flexible band having a mid-portion bonded to the bottom cover and a pair of opposed free ends which are adapted to encircle the top cover and tie together, thereby placing the fastening member in the fastened configuration.
These and other objects of the present invention will become more readily appreciated and understood from a consideration of the following detailed description of the exemplary embodiments of the present invention when taken together with the accompanying drawings, in which: